The Dragon Prince's Warrior

At the mercy of the fate

The atmosphere could never have felt heavier than when you're injured, alone, and at the mercy of fate. It's in those moments that you realize what truly matters. Yun shivered from the cold, anger, fear, and helplessness. The cave barely provided any shelter, and the darkness of the night offered no visibility whatsoever.

The prince had left Siu inside the small cave, and while the moon provided some light, he managed to gather a few twigs using what little energy he had left. Unfortunately, a mass of clouds, blacker than the night itself, covered the little light that might have been available in the surroundings.

The tall trees didn't help either, barely allowing any of the faint illumination that had already bid farewell. All of this, combined with the great weakness he felt to his very core, caused him to give up, and a wave of coldness attacked him from head to toe. Yun began to shiver uncontrollably and had no choice but to crawl to lie down next to Siu and wait for the discomfort to pass on its own.

The young man's breathing started to become faster; he felt as if he were suffocating, as if his lungs weren't receiving the oxygen they needed. But that mattered little compared to his concern for the girl lying beside him, who looked absolutely wretched. However, a glimmer of hope ignited when he examined her more closely, and her breathing appeared more stable than it had been a couple of hours ago.

"I hope she'll make it in the end; after all, she's like at home here and knows the way back," Yun thought, his gaze fixed on the girl as he prayed with all his might for Siu's recovery.

There, in that complete solitude, with the sharp pain from all his battle wounds, Yun continued to pray for the recovery of his mother and Siu. While he prayed for these reasons, a chill overcame him. Breathing became increasingly difficult, and his vision blurred at times.

In a desperate act of farewell, knowing he might die in that place, Yun reached out and touched Siu. His fingers traced her arm, which was covered in wounds, down her forearm to her wrist, until he felt the back of her hand.

The prince quickly turned to look at Siu, as injured as he was. Why had she gotten involved in a situation that could have been avoided? His heart raced as he felt the softness and warmth emanating from her, but at the same time, she seemed to be shivering from the cold just like him.

Immediately, Yun swallowed hard and knew that if they wanted to survive that frigid night, there was only one way to do it: they had to huddle together all night.

As best as he could, the prince drew closer to her and wrapped his arm around her, his hand settling on her slender waist and resting on her upper back. She didn't move, but she had stopped shivering with that simple act, which affected him far more than he would admit. He pulled away slightly to check on Siu; he needed to make sure she would at least stabilize a bit with this arrangement.

Yun's eyes didn't waver from her beauty. There was no denying that she had captivated him from the moment he first saw her. Something about her was incredibly alluring, whether it was her deep hazel eyes, her petite and upturned nose, or perhaps her full lips that always seemed to wear a charming smile. He couldn't deny the allure of her curves accentuated by that qipao dress that highlighted all her attributes.

"But what the heck are you thinking, Yun!? This meddlesome girl shouldn't be distracting you like this! It's nothing... you're just grateful in some way because she cared about you."

At that moment, the warmth of the girl's presence surpassed what Yun felt on his face, and the racing of his heart didn't help with the sensations she stirred nearby.

When he managed to control his nervousness, for a moment and in an inexplicable way, Yun's heart was filled with a peace he didn't often feel. The pained young man closed his eyes to savor that strange and tranquil sensation; a smile slowly formed on his lips, and his consciousness gradually sank into a heavy sleep, which he believed would determine his fate the following day.

As he closed his eyes, his mind disconnected as well. The pain diminished, and the chaotic thoughts of death, blood, injustice, and evil no longer had a place, nor any other feeling; everything seemed to have stopped in time, except for the darkness that surrounded the young man. He felt like he was floating in nothingness, as if his body had no weight at all.

Yun didn't know how long he was like that, he had no idea of anything, until the figure of his father appeared before him; he was lying on the ground with tears in his eyes, utterly inconsolable.

"Father, please, listen to me! I'm here!" Yun exclaimed, but his father seemed unable to hear him. That vision faded, leaving him unsure if it was real or just an illusion.

Before the prince could realize it, his elder brother Shun appeared before him. His attire was an armor very similar to the one that had come to rescue him, but he had a chest wound that bled profusely, so much that the blood flowed from its source, winding down in a great length, like a river.

Next to Shun was an unknown woman who appeared to be well-dressed, although he couldn't be certain because he could only see her silhouette. In one hand, she held a fan and fanned herself with it; the other hand gripped Shun's hand. When had his brother found a girlfriend? How much time had passed since he fought those dragons? He didn't dwell on his doubts. Yun addressed him; he had nothing to lose by trying to communicate.

"Brother?... Shun, can you hear me?" Yun asked, waving his hands to get him to turn around, but as he suspected, it was a futile attempt.

That image of Shun and the woman vanished before him, but another image took its place:

It was the image of his brother Jin. Like Shun, he wore crimson armor like himself. He had a cigarette in his mouth, the kind his father hated, but he held it with pride at that moment. His face looked bruised, as if he had been in a battle, but his expression was victorious and imposing.

Suddenly, a large crowd lifted him up and exclaimed his name as if he were a heroic character or had done something extraordinary for the city. They carried him to the Emperor's throne and seated him there. They handed him a cup of his father's favorite wine and knelt before him with such devotion, as if they were worshipping Buddha himself.

"By the gods... They're treating Jin like the rightful Emperor. Where could my father and Shun have gone? Now I really don't understand," Yun thought, very confused by what he was seeing.

As expected, the image disappeared, and Yun hoped to see his mother safe and sound, beside his father and happy because the odyssey had been successful; that was the prince's greatest wish, but it never came. Instead, a light descended right in front of him, and the rays were blinding, so much so that Yun had to cover his eyes immediately.

As that intense light diminished and turned into a softer glow, Yun uncovered his eyes and his soul could hardly contain itself with the vision that was just a few steps away:

That majestic bird, which seemed to harbor in its aura the light of the sun... or rather, the light of all the stars in the universe, flapped its large wings that seemed to have all known or unimaginable colors, just like its tail, which was so long and magnificent.

Upon landing on a surface that Yun couldn't see due to the darkness of the place, that bird looked around with its round eyes the color of a starry sky, and the golden glow around it radiated warmth and tranquility, making the prince shudder in its presence.

The Fenghuang itself had appeared before him! It had to be him; there was no doubt. The images that represented him were similar to how Yun saw him at that moment, but there was simply no comparison to the presence of such a majestic being.

Yun fell to his knees instinctively and paid his respects to the bird; he showed his respect for that vision and then raised his gaze, preparing to speak of his concerns.

"Magnificent Fenghuang... I beseech you for answers. Is my mother well? I saw my father and brothers, but not her. How is my family? Have I... died? I need your help; here, I can feel nothing, but the doubts continue to consume me at every moment."

The bird shook its plumage and began to preen itself with its beak. It seemed to have no voice, or perhaps it couldn't hear him, as had happened with the visions of his father and brothers. Yun couldn't even feel frustration at that moment, so he simply put aside the questions and prepared to admire the Fenghuang.

Before Yun's eyes, that legendary bird raised its gaze to the sky, spread its colorful wings, and took flight swiftly. If the prince thought he had seen it all, he was almost stunned when, beside the Fenghuang, another flash appeared. It looked like a shining serpent, but it was intensely red, magnificent... it was a flying dragon.

Both creatures performed a kind of dance; it seemed like a courtship ritual or something similar. Fenghuang and Dragon joined their bodies and seemed to become one. Soon, without stopping their dance, they began to spin in the air, much faster than Yun's eyes could capture. Both formed a perfect circular figure, half white, half black. Both halves seemed like two drops forming a symbol never seen by the prince.

That luminous circular figure began to disappear from Yun's view, and like the other images, it vanished, leaving him in complete darkness. As time passed, his body became heavy, so much so that he fell to the ground. His breathing weakened once again, and the pains he no longer felt seemed to have returned to his body.

The darkness receded with each passing moment, and finally, his eyes began to perceive light... It seemed like the light of a new day welcoming him. Just above him, the first thing he saw clearly was an angelic face smiling at him with sweetness. His heart raced with a strong beat, and there he realized that he was still alive... and so was she.